The Fraying
by meiling2086
Summary: A rope begins with a single strand. It binds those that are a part of it. But ropes soon fray and strands begin to break. Our lives are part of a rope already fraying. We are... breaking.
1. The Aftermath

**Disclaimer:** The works of _Bleach_ rightfully belong to Kubo Tite.

**Disclaimer 1: **All new characters are rightfully my property and I take full responsibility on their behaviour in this story.

**Author's Notes:** I have some distinctions between different words in this story. Terms such as _asauchi_ and _zanpakuto_ are also in use when referring to swords, while _Kido_ refer to spells. The term _Shinigami_ is loosely based on plural terms. When referring to a group of two or more: _shinigami_, when referring to an individual: _Shinigami_. Just please keep these in mind.

* * *

**The Aftermath**

* * *

"Nezu… mi…"

Red eyes peered down at her from afar. Her best friend, her older sister, swung the chain above her head in patience, waiting for her to stand on her own two feet. Everyone was watching them. The courtyard was open for many passersby to witness the onslaught before them, and the Spiritual Pressure that emanated from the two in the fight was something that could not have been ignored. Her friend grinned at the sight of her body, riddled with torn flesh and blood. It intimidated her, but she knew better that Nezumi was lost to something inside of her.

"Release it," spoke Nezumi in an eerily serious tone, the grin still plastered on her face. "Release your _zanpakuto_."

She knew that this was not her. They grew up together, trained together, and lost together. She began to stand on her two feet, her arms hung by her sides, having received the most damage in the fight. Her sword, her _asauchi_, was sheathed, having decided to not fight her friend midway through the course of this 'sparring session'. She breathed through the pain, her Spiritual Pressure wilting from the strong presence before her. She looked up at Nezumi, seeing those eyes again, reflected by the Spiritual Pressure that radiated off of her friend's body. For a while, there was silence. It was all she could hear, except for Nezumi's voice that seethed with impatience.

"Now!" yelled Nezumi, her grin diminished from her face.

The hook upon Nezumi's chain spilt blood with every swing: her blood spraying on the white-washed floor. Through the pain, the heavy breathing, she raised her head and looked into Nezumi's eyes**. **

"I don't… have one…" she replied through heavy breaths.

Nezumi's Spiritual Pressureexploded around her. Her red eyes stared down at her little sister before her, swinging the chain faster in her hands.

"Liar!" she yelled, throwing the hook towards her little sister, her only best friend.

She watched as the hook flew towards her with ease, watching as the glint of the steel shone towards her face. She had not given up on Nezumi, but she no longer had the strength to move out of its way. She closed her eyes and anticipated the attack, waiting for the final blow. She only hoped Nezumi would snap herself out of it before it connected.

* * *

All she could hear was silence, but she was aware of what was happening around her. There was a clamour of noise, a raucous of voices, and the scuffling of footsteps. Although her senses were drowned in haziness, she was still slightly aware of her being carried, of walking towards a place where hands grabbed for her and laid her to rest. Was this what it felt like to die? To feelas if nothing was there at all? She wasn't even sure what had happened after her last words. The pain was gone, and she felt more relaxed. But her head was swimming in an empty haze. She thought she truly was dead.

"Ugh…" she groaned as she opened her eyes in a dim-lit room, her vision blurred. "Am I dead?" She heard laughter in the room, turning her head towards a figure in white. With her vision clearing, she saw a Captain's uniform sitting by her bed.

"Captain Unohana?" she spoke with grogginess lacing her voice. Her vision began to return to normal, witnessing the Captain indeed sitting by her bed. She found herself covered in bandageswhere the injuries once laid, looking down at her now recovered state.

"Ah, so you've recovered quite well Itagaki-chan," spoke Unohana, reaching out for a first-aid kit beside her. "I just came in to see how you fared today and it seems you've begun to wake." The Captain of the Fourth Division placed the first-aid kit upon her lap, watching her patient rise from her bed. She smiled at the dumbfounded look on her patient's face as she looked upon her arms and body.

"It's been two weeks since you lost consciousness," she continued, smiling at her patient who, having heard the amount of time looked at her wide-eyed.

"T- Two weeks?!" exclaimed Itagaki, shutting her mouth with her hands afterwards. She realised how quiet the room really was, feeling slightly embarrassed and disrespectful towards the Captain before her. Instead, she was given a smile by the Captain, who rose from her chair and walked towards her.

"Now, now, you shouldn't be stressing yourself too much," spoke Unohana, holding a hand towards Itagaki's forehead. "The courtyard is not a place to be settling scores or the like in the first place."

The courtyard. Her earlier memories began to return to her. Nezumi's eyes indeed had intimidated her, but she wondered why she had suddenly changed like that. It was an innocent sparring session to remember old times. But something changed, and she had released a _zanpakuto_ of her own. Itagaki had not known about Nezumi's acquiring of one. Though she may have been proud of her in a perfect world, this was different.

"Nezumi?" she questioned, warranting Unohana to look at her. "How is she?"

With a smile, Unohana merely replied: "I'm not quite sure who you're asking about dear."

It was then and there that Itagaki knew Nezumi was not housed in Division 4. It came as a relief and a dread, fearing that her friend may have suffered consequences to her violent behaviour. She thought about how she sheathed her sword to show her that she no longer wanted to fight. But Nezumi refused the gesture, ending Itagaki here under the care of Unohana herself.

"Luckily, you got here in time," spoke Unohana once more, breaking Itagaki's train of thought. "You've lost a large amount of blood when you arrived here. Sending you back to your Division any earlier than today would've been dreadful for your health." Unohana then walked away from the bed, picking up her first-aid kit and looking within its contents to find new bandages.

Itagaki was once again in thought, remembering how much Nezumi's bladed hook spilt the blood from its steel. It was true. She knew through the pain that she had lost a fair amount of blood, but she tried to reach through Nezumi without having to resort to hurting her. Her last memories of her standing there motionless were her only memories to go from. It was from there that everything blurred by her in a haze. Just like the last time.

Unohana returned to her bed and started to remove the old bandages, inspecting the wounds that had healed remarkably well from a two-week coma. Itagaki watched as she renewed the bandages, wrapping fresh ones around the body to ensure no infections would occur. Despite the silence between them, Itagaki had a thought in mind.

"Captain Unohana?" she asked, warranting a quizzical hum from the Captain, who still continued putting new dressings on her body. "How did I get here?"

Unohana wrapped the last needed bandage around her shoulders, packing the old bandages into a sanitary bag and her medical utensils in the kit beside her. She smiled genially at Itagaki when closing her kit, replying: "Your Lieutenant brought you here."

Itagaki replied with a surprised exclamation, again warranting another smile from the Captain.

"You were barely conscious," she continued, rising from her seat beside Itagaki's bed. "Yet amazingly, you still seemed aware of what was going on, even after sending you to one of our squad members. But rest assured your long nap has healed your wounds up nicely. You may leave soon today if you wish." Unohana smiled down at Itagaki, who was staring ahead in thought. She heard a sigh from her patient who looked to her with a smile of her own on her face.

"Thank you Captain Unohana," she replied.

* * *

After a few hours of rest, Itagaki checked out from the Fourth Division, thanking Unohana and the rest of the Division for the aid she received while hospitalised. She wandered through _Seireitei_, both anticipating and dreading what she may hear from others about the strange incident two weeks ago. The new bandages on her body have given her some means of movement, having only been placed on her shoulders where most of the damage persisted. She held onto her right shoulder, looking down at the ground in thought once more, her eyes fixated on each step she took.

"Nezumi..." she spoke under her breath, worried about her friend's well-being. Nezumi was family to her. An older sister she looked up to. But everything played out wrongly. What had happened to her?

"Haruka!" called out a voice from behind, breaking Itagaki's train of thought. She turned around to find a group of familiar faces heading her way, stopping before her with worried looks.

"Haruka, you're out of the medic already?" asked one of the girls before her with a surprised look.

Itagaki nodded in reply, smiling slightly to reassure the others of her well-being. The group before her sighed in relief, happy that their comrade was able to walk again. She eyed their uniforms, noticing their Division insignias were shown noticeably on their sleeves. She had a feeling there was training today after all.

"Wow," spoke a young man behind the girls, rubbing the back of his head. "I can't believe that Nezumi would attack you like that."

"Are you all right?" spoke another girl, looking at Haruka with earnest eyes.

She smiled again and waved her hands in front of her in embarrassment, replying: "Yeah, I'm okay. Captain Unohana said that I healed quite well. I should be able to attend practise today, if I'm up to it."

"What a relief," commented the other girl, holding her hand to her chest. "But that was scary, what happened two weeks ago."

"Nezumi and you were so tight together," continued the other girl. "How come she suddenly all-out attacks you?"

Haruka's face saddened at the thought of Nezumi, wondering how she had coped after the incident. She looked towards her fellow comrades with concern. "Where is Nezumi anyway?" she asked, warranting looks from her three comrades before her.

"Nezumi?" repeated the young man, folding his arms behind his head. "Well, since Lieutenant Abaraifound out she had a _zanpakuto_, he's training her to control it."

"Lieutenant… Abarai…?" asked Haruka, confused at what she had heard with her own two ears. She received nods from all three of her comrades at the same time.

"Yeah, she did get punishment for what she did," commented one girl with her finger poised matter-of-factly. "But training under Lieutenant Abarai would be punishment enough. Don't you think?" With that the group began to roar with laughter and conversed about how Nezumi would've fared by now. Haruka smiled at herself, thinking to the back of her mind about Nezumi's situation.

'_Hmm…' _she thought to herself. _'I guess she got her wish after all.'_ She began to laugh with the others, who directed her towards the training grounds where Division 9 were to start their sessions for today. On the way, they kept Haruka up-to-date with the news from the past two weeks, both informative and amusing. Much to her dismay, nothing interesting occurred, but her comrades, especially the girls, poked fun at her on how she was rushed to the Fourth Division's medic facility by their Lieutenant and acting Captain. Although she had received the news from Unohana herself, hearing it again just made her feel more self-conscious for the fact that she was part of something against normal standards in training. She worried about paying the consequences herself for being a part of fuelling the wanton and unnecessary violence. She was tempted on asking what Nezumi's punishment was, only so she could expect the same treatment as well.

Eventually, the four of them reached the grounds, seeing the other _shinigami_ from their Division already grouped together in a large mass. They all conversed with each other, their voices echoing amongst themselves as they waited for their Lieutenant to arrive on the scene. The day was typical: cloudless skies for a perfect training session. Haruka felt slightly nervous all of a sudden, feeling the pit of her stomach swing low inside. The idea of being punished after what happened lingered in her mind.

"Well, time for practise guys," spoke the young man, who had been walking ahead of the girls in the group. With that, he jogged towards the mass, meeting up with a few others and chatting up a storm, while Haruka and her two female comrades continued walking towards them at a steady pace.

Haruka wished it could've been like any other day, where training was just a normal day out with friends. But the feeling in the pit of her stomach began to drop much lower, worried about what would happen afterwards. She began to wish staying back in the Fourth Division just to avoid today, or at the very least, getting back to her quarters just to think to herself and not worry about the consequences for a while.

"Haruka?" asked one of her comrades, looking at Haruka with concern. "Are you sure about practise today?"

Haruka, snapping herself out of her negative rut, looked at her fellow comrade and smiled, replying: "Of course. Captain Unohana did say to take it a little easy. But I think I'll manage practise. Besides, two weeks out of commission isn't good for the body."

Her friends smiled back at her with reassurance and led her to the grounds, merging into the mass together. With Haruka back into the Division, a few others turned towards the low-level _Shinigami_ and asked about her health and well-being. Haruka replied to all of them in the same way she had her friends. She was fine. Although she wouldn't admit it, she was afraid of any repercussions that may occur in the near future, hearing a lot more about Nezumi and her predicaments in her Division. The pit in her stomach began to sink even lower.

Eventually training commenced when their Lieutenant/acting Captain arrived on the grounds along with their seated officer. Everyone began to pair with somebody else for their training partner. Her two female comrades paired with each other as per usual, while her male comrade paired with another friend of his in the Division. It was often like this. Haruka would be one of the few leftovers of the group who would be paired with anyone who had no partner for the session, or was willing to train with her. She didn't impose on her fellow _shinigami_. She often waited without a partner, and sometimes would train on her own if necessary. However, it wasn't long until a fellow male _Shinigami_ asked to train with her for this training session. She gladly obliged, the both of them finding a spot to train each other amongst the others on the grounds. She walked a few strides away to give a good starting point, but was interrupted by her training partner from behind.

"Haruka," he asked, gaining a quizzical look on her face. "You really should rest. We don't have to train if you don't want to."

Smiling at his concern over her health, she unsheathed her _asauchi_ and held it at a defensive pose, readying for the session today.

"I've been resting for two weeks now," she reassured, swinging her sword to make sure her arms were at the very least useful for training. "I think I can handle a little."

* * *

Training passed like a breeze. As soon as it had started, it had ended, with many of the _shinigami_ pleased with their efforts for today. Haruka thanked her training partner for not going easy on her, despite the injuries she received, and hoped that his usual partner would return to training without illness. Waving her training partner goodbye, she caught up with her usual friends in the Division and they all conversed about today's session, often teasing each other on their skills. As they all were about to walk away from the grounds with the rest of their fellow _shinigami_, wanting to return to their quarters, Haruka felt a firm grip on her shoulder from behind.

"Itagaki," spoke a commanding voice, making Haruka's body stiff from anticipation and fear. She turned to see her Lieutenant and acting Captain, Shuuhei Hisagi, standing there with his eyes looking down at her, holding her by her shoulder. Haruka's friends stood before her in awkwardness, feeling some tension in the atmosphere.

"Well… Haruka," spoke her male comrade, attempting to break the silence. "… Have fun."

With that, she saw her friends dash off in the opposite direction, leaving her alone with their Lieutenant. A small _eep_ escaped her throat, but not loud enough for Shuuhei to hear. She turned around to face him, bowing in respect to her superior.

"Yes sir?" she asked, standing before Shuuhei with her head low. A short silence followed afterwards, making her feel even more nervous about the situation. She knew it. She was going to get punished. This would've all been avoided if she thought straight about Nezumi, or else she should've stayed in the Fourth Division a little longer. The pit in her stomach just seemed to sink even lower. It felt non-existent at this point.

"How are your wounds?" he finally asked, surprising Haruka with his concern.

Haruka looked up at Shuuhei who still looked at her with his hard gaze. She straightened herself up, placing her hands before her in respect to her Lieutenant.

"I'm quite all right, Lieutenant Hisagi," she replied, keeping her gaze on her Lieutenant for any sign of tolerance from his body language. "Thank you." For a while, after entering into the _Gotei 13_, into Division 9, Haruka became a little more aware about her superiors. She came to the conclusion that her Lieutenant, Shuuhei Hisagi, was hard to read. She wasn't aware if he was angered, concerned, or even amused at anything. It was that type of person that made her feel too wary.

Shuuhei crossed his arms and closed his eyes, before looking back at Haruka with his hard look. "Would you mind telling me what it was all about?" he asked again.

"Sir?" she asked with a quizzical look on her face, still keeping her eyes on him. Haruka could never get used to her Lieutenant's gaze. That hard look Shuuhei seemed to show everyone made him all the more intimidating to his subordinates. But behind that hard look was a sense of concern, or at the very least, an interest in the matter.

"We were merely sparring at first," began Haruka, lowering her head from her Lieutenant's gaze. "Kind of reminiscing our academy days together." She looked back at her Lieutenant, noticing that he was looking elsewhere but still held an attentive ear. "But something happened midway and Nezumi lost control of herself. Before I knew it, she had unleashed a _zanpakuto_." The memories came back to her again of Nezumi's release. She was acting strange before doing so as she began reliving their sparring days together. Yet the sight of her blade transforming around her, shocked and frightened Haruka.

"But sir," continued Haruka, with a pleading tone in her voice. "She's normally not like that-"

"What was she screaming about?" asked Shuuhei once more, interrupting her plea.

Realising her sudden change in behaviour, Haruka retained her composure and continued to gauge her Lieutenant's reactions. He still looked away from her with his arms crossed before him, which made her feel more nervous.

"She believed I had a _zanpakuto_ as well, and wanted to see it," she answered with her voice laced with slight confusion. "To fight me with it." She held her hand upon the sheath of her _asauchi_. Even she was puzzled about Nezumi's commands during the incident. She had never achieved a _zanpakuto_ at all and still held steadfast to her _asauchi_ that hung by her sash. Her last recollection about Nezumi was that she too had an _asauchi_. They both did.

Shuuhei turned his attentions back onto Haruka, who stared at the floor before her while in thought, her hand still holding upon her sheath beside her. He uncrossed his arms and bent low to face her, snapping her attentions away from her thoughts.

"Are you hiding something from me?" he asked, gauging her reactions to his question.

Haruka, realising how close her Lieutenant's face was to hers, looked at him nervously with a stiff demeanour. "No sir!" she denied, waving her hands in front of him. "Nothing at all!"

Shuuhei closed his eyes with a hum and rose back onto his feet, walking past a flustered and nervous Haruka who still held her hands before her.

"Follow me," he simply ordered, continuing to walk away from Haruka.

Haruka looked back to see his form slowly walking away from her and began to catch up to him from behind while still keeping a fair distance away from her superior. She looked at him with concern, now unable to gauge him with his back towards her. If this wasn't the route to punishment, Haruka didn't know what else it could be. As they began to walk through _Seireitei_, Haruka began to look towards the pavement before her, seeing each white-washed tile pass her and her Lieutenant. She remembered how red the floor was, painted by her blood that sprayed from both her body and Nezumi's hook. She inwardly sighed and started to recollect that time, to get her mind away from possible punishments ahead.

How did everything lead to this?


	2. The Calm before the Storm

**Disclaimer:** The works of _Bleach_ rightfully belong to Kubo Tite.

**Disclaimer 1: **All new characters are rightfully my property and I take full responsibility on their behaviour in this story.

**Author's Notes:** I have some distinctions between different words in this story. Terms such as _asauchi_ and _zanpakuto_ are also in use when referring to swords, while _Kido_ refer to spells. The term _Shinigami_ is loosely based on plural terms. When referring to a group of two or more: _shinigami_, when referring to an individual: _Shinigami_. Just please keep these in mind.

* * *

**The Calm before the Storm – Two Weeks and Two Days Ago**

* * *

_Seireitei_ was welcoming the dawn with its towers touched by the morning sunlight. The skies were clear of clouds, which gave good signs of weather today for those who were training. The streets were empty at this time of day. Not many people woke to have a nice stroll in the morning. Haruka breathed in the fresh air, stretching her arms above her head before resting them at the nape of her neck. This was normal daily routine. She was the earliest riser in her quarters and passed the time enjoying the morning air. Sometimes, she would meet a few faces, those who have early duties or others like herself who just passed the time away. It was this time of day that made her feel more relaxed than ever.

"Hey! Haruka!" called out a voice from behind. She turned around to hear running footsteps head towards her, her hands still resting upon her neck. Behind her, she saw a fellow _Shinigami_ running down the small street. With the sunlight now brightening the city, she could spot the black hair swaying behind the _Shinigami_ in an odd fashion, having been messily tied up at the top of her head. As soon as the _Shinigami_ reached Haruka, she bent low, holding her weight upon her knees while she breathed heavily from the run.

"Nezumi?" spoke Haruka, looking down at the exhausted female _Shinigami_ before her.

Nezumi rose back onto her feet, wiping the sweat upon her brow. Her hair was tied messily behind her, some strands falling to her shoulders as if she had just woken from bed. She towered over Haruka by a few inches, looking down at the smaller _Shinigami_ with a grin.

"See?" she spoke, pointing her thumb at herself in triumph. "I told you I can get up early in the morning."

Haruka smiled with a sceptical look on her face, dropping her arms from behind her and crossing them. She looked up at Nezumi who still held that grin upon her face. "You didn't sleep again, didn't you?" she asked, warranting Nezumi toppling over onto the floor before she jumped right back up again.

"Hey! I did sleep!" she retorted, her body taut in frustration. "I slept a lot, thank you very much."

Haruka laughed. She knew Nezumi was predictable at times and that her lies were obvious to the naked eye. They both knew that, despite Nezumi denying her lack of acting talent.

"You are the worst liar, Nezumi," commented Haruka, noticing her sister fluster at the sound of it. "But good morning anyway."

Nezumi sighed, feigning that Haruka's words had no affect on her, crossing her own arms in jest. With her head poised away from Haruka, Nezumi stood in a pretentious pose, looking back at Haruka with a sceptical look of her own. "You are such a dork," she merely commented, looking down at Haruka with a smirk.

"No I'm not!" snapped Haruka, unfolding her arms and looking back at Nezumi with furrowed eyes.

Noticing Haruka's change in behaviour, Nezumi milked the situation, slightly bending low from her hips to emphasise her authority. "Yes you are," she spoke with a playful tone, pointing a finger atop Haruka's head. "A short dork."

Haruka slightly seethed from the denoting suggestion Nezumi had emphasised with her finger. Over the years they had known each other, shse was still slightly offended over Nezumi's teasing, often referring to their height differences. In many cases, just like now, Nezumi would have the last word. Haruka sighed inwardly and looked towards the sky, noticing the dawn light had diminished and was now clearing for the day.

"I got to get back to my Division Hall," she spoke, trying to get away from Nezumi's teasing.

Nezumi too sighed, looking up at the cloudless sky.

"Yeah, me too," she agreed. "I have to help out my Division in training today." With that, Nezumi began running past Haruka, heading down the street towards the training grounds of _Seireitei_. She turned around while in mid-run, waving at Haruka with a smile.

"See you later!" she farewelled. "Kay, Haruka?"

* * *

Haruka waved back at Nezumi, placing a hand next to her mouth to cover the distance that Nezumi had covered in her run. "Take care!" she yelled back, watching Nezumi turn a corner and disappear from sight.

Haruka made the remainder of her walk back to the Ninth Division Hall, already seeing a handful of familiar faces standing around. She thought back to her meeting with Nezumi that morning, and couldn't help but smile. The both of them being best friends could be understatement. They had lived as a family since Nezumi found her in _Rukongai_, and had treated each other like sisters. She remembered how long ago that was before entering into _Shinigami Academy_, and now after half a year in the _Gotei 13_, they both still tried their hardest to meet each other whenever they could.

"Haruka!" called a voice, breaking Haruka's reminiscing. She turned to find two girls headed in her direction, stopping their light jog before her. They were her female comrades who shared the same quarters as she did, who were now properly dressed for today's session.

"Where did you go this morning?" one asked with concern laced in her voice.

"I took a walk like I usually do," simply replied Haruka, acting as if it were normal routine to do so.

"Don't worry about it," spoke the other, waving her hands in front of Haruka for reassurance. "You know Kisaki. She's always the worrywart."

Kisaki, who had thought otherwise, looked at the other girl with a furrowed sour look on her face. "Am not Osako!" she pouted.

"Are too!" retorted Osako, giving Kisaki the same expression.

Haruka giggled at the sight of her two friends, walking behind them while they glared at each other in jest.

"Come on guys," she coaxed, gently pushing them ahead towards the hall. "Shouldn't we be helping everyone set up the hall right now?" While Haruka aided her friends into the hall, the _shinigami_ of their Division had already begun setting up various training apparatuses within, placing a number of mats on the floors. A few others placed poles upon the stands that stood near the back wall. Some were wooden while others were bamboo-woven. The hall was becoming more organised with many of the _shinigami_ contributing their efforts for the start of the training.

"Hey I'm done here!" called out one, fixing the poles upon the stands.

"Yeah, same here!" replied another from the other side of the hall, placing the last piece of matting on the floor.

Haruka, Osako and Kisaki had started bringing in extra mats for precautionary purposes, placing them in the corner of the hall with a number of other mats. After setting them down, the three walked towards the centre of the hall, lightly conversing about a number of things. The hall was relatively ready for training, albeit with a few double-checks on equipment and consumerables. It was training from team members under the 4th and 5th seats, the hall specially set up for the exercises. Many of the _shinigami_ simply waited for the training to commence, sitting around the now organised hall. While watching everybody else finish up on their small jobs, Haruka turned to her friends, watching them still arguing over Kisaki's overwhelming sense of concern. She smiled at them even though they weren't aware of her beside them.

Eventually, the hall was finally set and ready for training. The _shinigami_ of the Ninth Division stood around in chatter, waiting for the seated officers of the Lieutenant to arrive. The three girls found a comfortable spot on the floor, sitting in a circle and talking amongst themselves.

"Hey there ladies," spoke a voice from above, the three girls looking up to find a familiar face greet them, his upper body bent low to tower over them.

"Oh, good morning Yutaro-kun," greeted Kisaki, seeing the male grin back at them.

"So how's everybody?" he asked, finding a spot between Haruka and Kisaki.

"Nyah, so-so," replied Osako, waving her hands nonchalantly.

"We're good," replied Haruka thereafter, gaining a grin from Yutaro.

"Did you spot any of our officers on your way here?" asked Kisaki, making Yutaro look up in thought.

"Just a few," he answered. "They'll be on their way here shortly."

"It's just like you," groaned Osako exasperatedly, crossing her arms, warranting a curious look from Yutaro. "You're always late for everything."

Yutaro's face faulted from Osako's observation, making both Haruka and Kisaki giggle under their breaths. Soon, the hall's murmurs began to die down as two seated officers of the Ninth Division entered inside. The four, among others, stood from the floor, standing respectfully before the officers before seeing their Lieutenant walk into the hall. Shuuhei looked upon his Division before him, inspecting everyone there with his hard look.

"All right," he started. "I want a clean training exercise. No one is to use any _Kido_ or other techniques. This is purely a sword training exercise to test all of you in the art of swordsmanship. Am I clear?"

A murmur rose from the hall, suggesting everyone had gotten the idea.

"Good," replied Shuuhei. "Begin!"

* * *

After an hour or so, the mats had been worn-down, and the poles upon the stands either chipped or slashed through. Training was intense, with the 4th and 5th seated officers, as well as Shuuhei, overlooking the proceedings. While many _shinigami_ found partners, others preferred to train alone with the designated poles set up by the back wall. As per usual, Osako and Kisaki trained together, having been partners since they entered the _Gotei 13_ years ago. Yutaro himself found a friend of his to train against, mumbling to him about a bet of sorts in the session. Haruka, however, waited if anyone needed a training partner today, but to no avail, many people had found one and she was left to train by herself. Most of the training was against a wooden pole, testing her strength in her swings and thrusts. But by the end of the training, she had moved onto a bamboo pole, testing her dexterity and agility in her speed and timing. She preferred the bamboo, despite it being a one-off training exercise. She was never capable of overpowering strength against her speed.

Her commanding officer, seat number 4, watched her train on her own among others, giving out some good pointers about judging better means of combat. Haruka took his advice graciously every so often, applying these into her training as best as she could. Despite the advice, Haruka still felt her speed was her strong point. The training exercises had neared its end with many of _shinigami_ sweating from exertion and hard sparring.

"All right, training's over for today!" announced Shuuhei, looking around the hall of now exhausted _shinigami_. "You're all dismissed!"

The chatter of the _shinigami_ rose within the hall, conversing about their efforts for today while Shuuhei and the seated officers left the hall. Haruka wiped the sweat from her brow, turning to find Osako and Kisaki approach her.

"No partner today?" asked Osako with a sceptical look on her face.

"Not today," replied Haruka, sheathing her _asauchi_ back into her sheath.

Osako sighed, holding a hand to her forehead in slight frustration over Haruka. Haruka looked at her with a bewildered look on her face, blinking at Osako's mild irritation over the matter.

"Why don't you just choose someone yourself?" asked Osako, waving her hands in the air in a semi-dramatic fashion. "What are you afraid of? Rejection?"

Haruka laughed at Osako's observation. "No!" she replied with a smile. "I don't want to impose on people."

Osako rolled her eyes, crossing her arms as she did so. "You're just too nice for your own good," she commented. "You know that?"

"I think it's a nice quality in a person," commented Kisaki, making Osako look at her with a sceptical look.

"You mean being a doormat?" she questioned.

"I'm not a doormat!" retorted Haruka, furrowing her eyes slightly at Osako, who waved her hands nonchalantly.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say," she replied, making Haruka slightly seethe before her.

When training had ended, all of the _shinigami_ walked out of the worn-out hall, welcoming the fresh air outside. It was now past noon and the skies were still clear since the morning. Haruka and her friends took a small stroll through the streets, heading back to their quarters after a rigorous training exercise to clean up. Yutaro, who had followed them, playfully tried to stroll into their quarters, before an angry Osako kicked him in the behind to leave. Although amused, Yutaro bade the three girls a farewell, knowing he needed a good clean up as well.

The girls eventually took quick baths, not wanting to waste the hot water in their quarters. After redressing themselves, they decided to help out others at the Ninth Division office, hearing that some reports needed to be filed before the deadline. Walking out of their quarters, they made their way to the office, finding a handful of people already moving around with papers in hand. The office was as busy as usual, stockpiling papers, reports and books everywhere.

The three girls inwardly sighed. The afternoon was going to be a long haul.

* * *

The sun was setting over _Seireitei_'s walls with the orange hue illuminating the sky and the city. After a long day at the office, Haruka sat atop one of the buildings, high enough to look over at the horizon where the sun was slowly disappearing. She breathed deeply, looking at how the bright yellow rays of the sun stretched across the horizon, as if the sun was flattening itself upon the earth. She laid her head upon her knees just staring ahead, unaware of footsteps approaching her from behind.

"So…?" called a voice from behind Haruka. "How's everything in your Division?" Haruka turned around to find Nezumi behind her, standing upon the roof tiles of the building.

"I was wondering the same thing about you," she replied, watching Nezumi take a seat next to her.

"Oh, you know same old, same old," she replied, leaning her weight upon her arms. "We were just cleaning up from training. I showed the boys a thing or two."

Haruka saw the grin cross on her friend's lips, smiling all the while at her cockiness in the matter. "I hope you didn't hit them that hard," she teased, giggling under her breath.

"Hey, they're guys!" retorted Nezumi in a matter-of-factly tone. "They can take a little pain."

Haruka laughed out loud, making Nezumi smile at Haruka's amusement in her day. The both of them had made this routine on a weekly basis, meeting each other on any rooftop to have a proper catch-up session with each other. Dusk felt the most fitting, since all daily activities ended around this time and gave the both of them enough daylight to just chat. To them, it reminded them of their academy days, having always hung out with each other as much as possible.

"So…" began Haruka, breaking the silence that had settled between them. "I am to assume you spent time with Lieutenant Abarai today?"

Nezumi's face flustered when slight shades of red appeared upon her cheeks. Her body jerked from the sudden question, mentally becoming defensive over it. "Why do you tease me about that?" she asked through the blushing on her face. "It's frustrating!"

Haruka laughed at Nezumi's reaction, knowing she was able to have one thing to tease about her. She still felt Nezumi always had the upper hand in the teasing stakes, feeling the brunt of her playfulness and cocky attitude some of the time. But when it came to her Lieutenant, Haruka knew how she felt about it.

"Oh, just you wait and see," spoke Nezumi with a pouty look on her face, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks. "I'll get closer to him if it's the last thing I do!"

"That's the plan, right?" reiterated Haruka, closing her eyes as she spoke.

"Right!"

Haruka giggled and laughed again, making Nezumi blush even more at the idea of Haruka's treatment of the matter.

"Why are you laughing?" asked Nezumi, feeling a little insulted by Haruka's reaction.

Haruka calmed herself down, wiping a small tear that crept out of her eye from all of the laughter. She turned to Nezumi with a sceptical look, half-smiling at her friend next to her. "You've had a crush on him ever since we started academy," she remarked, making Nezumi's blush deeper.

"You think that's funny?" she asked, still slightly insulted.

"It's actually cute," explained Haruka, now smiling at her friend, whose face has now faulted from the sudden change in Haruka's mood. "And the look on your face when we went on our last mock mission."

"He was there! There! Right in front of me! In the flesh!" exclaimed Nezumi, throwing her arms in front of her as if to emphasise each broken statement she spoke.

Haruka giggled while holding her hand up towards her forehead in a salute, using two of her fingers instead of the whole palm. "The Lieutenant that bade us good luck," she remarked, swinging the salute out in front of her.

Nezumi sighed, leaning back onto her arms again.

"If that wasn't a sign, I don't know what is," she remarked, sitting back into her spot on the roof after her recent hysterics. "Now, I'm in Division 6. It's like fate is pulling me on its strings." Nezumi clutched her chest with her hands, dramatically playing out her words in a melodramatic manner.

"Or," interrupted Haruka with her index finger poised in front of her. "You're just overreacting because you have a crush on him."

Nezumi narrowed her eyes at Haruka, who smiled in return. She sighed again and thought she could never win against Haruka in this type of conversation and looked back towards the horizon. The sun began to disappear over it, the yellow globe now setting behind the horizon. The remaining light still fractured in the sky, breaking it into colours of orange, blues, and purples. Nightfall was arriving, and the breeze began to get colder. The stars, thought faint, began to appear above, along with the moon that hung in the darkest regions of the sky.

Nezumi lifted her arms and hugged them around her legs, keeping some warmth away from the chill of the coming night. She looked towards Haruka, who still watched the fleeting sunset before them.

"So…" she spoke, breaking another silence that had fallen upon them again. "How's your Division coping?"

"Hm?" replied Haruka as she turned towards Nezumi beside her, blinking.

"You know, Captain Tousen and all…"

Haruka's eyes began to sink towards the roof tiles before her. Slowly her head lowered in thought, an empathic sense of despondency engulfing her.

"Oh, that," she replied monotonously, turning her head towards the faint glow of the horizon ahead. It had been a month or so since the _Ryoka_ incident, and though there were no solid evidence as to what was happening, everyone knew the treachery that had occurred in their city. Haruka noticed how, for the first week alone, everyone in her Division had fallen into some melancholic hole when they discovered their Captain was a traitor, leaving everyone behind. For a while, she saw how everyone couldn't speak about it, noticing an awkward tension between her friends and herself about the matter. Although, she knew their Division wasn't the only one that felt the brunt of the problem.

Sighing, Haruka looked back at Nezumi, feeling that despondency return to her after thinking through about the situation. "Everyone's got mixed feelings about it actually," she continued, gaining Nezumi's undivided attention. "I mean, we both haven't been in our Divisions for long, so I really have no solid opinion on it."

Nezumi looked back towards the now faint horizon, watching the night engulf _Seireitei_ in darkness. The stars began to shine brighter now that the sun had disappeared and the moon, half-waning, glowed brightly, replacing the bright yellow rays of the sun.

"I kind of feel sorry," she commented, piquing Haruka's curiosity.

"Why?" asked Haruka, tilting her head from the side while still keeping her attention on her friend.

"Your Lieutenant," replied Nezumi, looking back at Haruka and seeing her head upright after her simple explanation. "He must have it rough."

Haruka shortly thought through about Nezumi's reasoning before seeing her friend shift her body next to her.

"I mean, think about it," started Nezumi, now facing her body towards Haruka while leaning all her weight on one arm and using the other to illustrate her point. "Finding out that the one person you've put all your trust in just abandons you like that. And now, he has to look after your entire Division, because there's no one else there to do it." Nezumi turned her head towards the horizon, now dimmed by the night sky. "I think it's a little too much."

Haruka thought more about Nezumi's explanation, looking down at the rooves of the many buildings below them. The lanterns began to brighten in the small streets, illuminating the city in candlelight just like the stars did in the sky. The breeze brought a slight chill in the air, but the two girls had no qualms about the cold. There were still people walking through the streets, their shadows dancing against the lanterns that lit against the quarters of many of the Divisions. Haruka knew they had to return soon to avoid missing curfew.

"Nezumi," she spoke, slightly smiling at her friend. "I never knew you were so deep about this."

Nezumi smirked, lying on her back and pulling her arms up behind her head. She looked up at the stars that sparkled in the sky above them, watching them twinkle in a rhythm of their own.

"I have feelings too, you know!" she remarked, closing her eyes and enjoying her relaxation. She took a deep breath before opening her eyes again, turning her gaze towards Haruka next to her. "I mean, it's gotten everyone in a bind."

Haruka gently smiled at Nezumi, with her smiling back at her in return. The both of them returned to stargazing, watching the stars grow in number and cover the sky brilliantly. The wind was beginning to pick up again, sending a slight chill in their presence. It was soon time to head back to their quarters, or else they would have some explaining to do. Haruka stretched her arms above her head and took a deep breath.

"You know?" she started, gaining Nezumi's attention from the night sky. "I do have an opinion after all."

Nezumi waited for Haruka to continue, watching as her friend's body turned towards her.

"I think we just have to look ahead," continued Haruka, smiling at Nezumi. "Don't look back."

"You think so?" asked Nezumi, now leaning on her elbows to lift her head to look at Haruka.

"Do you believe me?" questioned Haruka, waiting for Nezumi's reply.

Nezumi raised her body from the roof, stretching her arms as she did so. She gave a small whine, shaking her hands nonchalantly. Haruka pouted at her response, raising an eyebrow at such a non-caring reply.

"Oh thanks," spoke Haruka, crossing her arms. "Shows how much faith you have in me."

Nezumi looked at Haruka with a baby face, pouting in a teasing and playful way. "Aww," she cooed, holding her palms together near her chest. "Does poor little Haruka need a hug?" With that, Nezumi grabbed onto Haruka and brought her into a bear hug, tightening her grip on the smaller _Shinigami_ and pushing her into her chest.

Surprised by the sudden reaction, Haruka's arms flailed around Nezumi while her face was forcibly pressed into her friend's chest. "Can't… breathe…"she choked, trying to grab some air from the bear hug that ensued.

Eventually, Nezumi released Haruka from her killer grip, allowing Haruka some fresh air enter her lungs. After a few moments of laughter and finishing up their conversations, both of the _shinigami_ made their way towards the streets of _Seireitei_ and began to walk each other home. It wasn't long until they were met with the crossroads, a path where they separated after every weekly catch-up and bade each other farewell and good night before making their way back to their quarters. Both _shinigami_ wished each other a good night sleep before going their separate ways. But something at the back of Haruka's mind knew something was wrong with Nezumi ever since the morning.

She looked bed-ridden. Her eyes were growing weary by the day. For the past week or so, Haruka thought that Nezumi just woke up on the wrong side of the bed, which was an occurrence in her friend's sleeping habits. Yet something was nagging at the back of her mind, something she had to watch out for. She turned around to spot Nezumi already walking around the corner and out of sight. She sighed inwardly, shaking the feeling from her head and continued to make her way towards her quarters. She didn't want to get caught past curfew.


End file.
